BBC Studios Digital Brands today launched Affinity Network, which gives advertisers access to programmes considered brand-safe in one place, rather than requiring them to buy inventory on a show-by-show basis.
The network comprises five verticals: Family, Our World, Entertainment, Auto, and Food and Travel, with more to follow. Brands like Bluey, BBC Earth, and Top Gear will be available across digital platforms including YouTube and TikTok.
The launch comes as Digital Brands has been appointed to sell the BBC’s YouTube portfolio outside the UK, starting with the BBC Archive and BBC Masterbrand channels, alongside the wider BBC Studios YouTube channel portfolio.
Jasmine Dawson, senior vice-president for digital, said the network is “built on affinity, not just reach”.
Affinity Family is the first to launch, bringing together children’s brands like Bluey and Bing. Dawson said that the trust parents place in these brands “is what makes this audience valuable to advertisers.”
As the network expands into the other verticals, Dawson said it will give advertisers “a consistent way to engage communities in safe, high-quality environments they already choose to be part of.”
Alongside the launch, Digital Brands announced an expansion of its family portfolio with global agreements to represent Zog for Magic Light Pictures, My Friend Maisy for Trustbridge Entertainment (excluding China) and BBC Studios’ Crookhaven, covering channel and content management as well as direct advertising sales.
The company said it generated 7bn ad impressions and 15.1bn YouTube views in its most recent financial year – up 21%. Its portfolio spans around 150 channels across 17 languages, reaching 350m people each month.
